Imaging 3-D faults using diffractions with modified dip-angle gathers

2019 ◽  
Vol 220 (3) ◽  
pp. 1569-1584
Author(s):  
Zhengwei Li ◽  
Jianfeng Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Fresnel Zone ◽  
Specular Reflection ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Accurate Identification ◽  
Time Migration ◽  
Diffraction Imaging ◽  
Prestack Time Migration ◽  
Dip Angle ◽  
Angle Gather ◽  
Fresnel Zones

SUMMARY Accurate identification of the locations and orientations of small-scale faults plays an important role in seismic interpretation. We have developed a 3-D migration scheme that can image small-scale faults using diffractions in time. This provides a resolution beyond the classical Rayleigh limit of half a wavelength in detecting faults. The scheme images weak diffractions by building a modified dip-angle gather, which is obtained by replacing the two dip angles dimensions of the conventional 2-D dip-angle gather with tangents of the dip angles. We build the modified 2-D dip-angle gathers by calculating the tangents of dip angles following 3-D prestack time migration (PSTM). In the resulting modified 2-D dip-angle gathers, the Fresnel zone related to the specular reflection exhibits an ellipse. Comparing with the conventional 2-D dip-angle gather, diffraction event related a fault exhibits a straight cylinder shape with phase-reversal across a line related the orientation of the fault. As a result, we can not only mute the Fresnel zones related to reflections, correct phase for edge diffractions and obtain the image of faults, but also detect the orientations of 3-D faults using the modified dip-angle gathers. Like the conventional dip-angle gathers, the modified dip-angle gathers can also be used to image diffractions resulting from other sources. 3-D Field data tests demonstrate the validity of the proposed diffraction imaging scheme.

3D diffraction imaging with Kirchhoff time migration using vertical traveltime difference gathers

Geophysics ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 84 (6) ◽  
pp. S555-S566 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhengwei Li ◽  
Jianfeng Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Fresnel Zone ◽  
Lateral Position ◽  
Two Dimensions ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Imaging Method ◽  
Time Migration ◽  
Diffraction Imaging ◽  
Dip Angle ◽  
Angle Gather

We have built a vertical traveltime difference (VTD) gather to image diffractions in the 3D time domain. This significantly improves detection of small-scale faults and heterogeneities in 3D seismic data. The VTD gather is obtained using 3D Kirchhoff prestack time migration based on the traveltime-related inline and crossline dip angles, which is closely related to the 2D dip-angle gather. In VTD gathers, diffraction events exhibit flattening, whereas reflection events have convex upward-sloping shapes. Different from the 2D dip-angle gather, Fresnel zone-related specular reflections are precisely focused on the given regions over all offsets and azimuths, thus leaving more diffraction energy after muting. To image linear diffractors, such as faults in three dimensions, the VTD gather can be extended into two dimensions by adding a dip-azimuth dimension. This makes it possible to correct phases of edge diffractions and detect the orientations of the linear diffractors. The memory requirement of the VTD or VTD plus azimuth gathers is much less than that of the 2D dip-angle gathers. We can store the gathers at each lateral position and then correct the phase and enhance the weak diffractions in 3D cases. Synthetic and field data tests demonstrate the effectiveness of our 3D diffraction imaging method.

Diffraction imaging using shot and opening-angle gathers: A prestack time migration approach

Geophysics ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 79 (2) ◽  
pp. S23-S33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jianfeng Zhang ◽  
Jiangjie Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Field Data ◽  
Opening Angle ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Time Migration ◽  
Crucial Problem ◽  
Diffraction Imaging ◽  
Prestack Time Migration ◽  
Angle Gather ◽  
Fresnel Zones ◽  
Migration Velocities

We have developed a migration scheme that can image weak diffractions in time. This significantly contributes to conventional interpretation in detecting small-scale faults and heterogeneities. The proposed scheme images diffractions using the shot and opening-angle gathers generated by prestack time migration (PSTM). Here, the shot and opening-angle gather represents a 2D migrated gather in terms of shot locations and opening angles between the incident- and scattered-rays. We muted the Fresnel zones related to reflections, corrected phases of diffractions, and enhanced diffractions in the migrated gathers. As a result, the proposed diffraction PSTM can image diffractions with and without phase-reversal. Moreover, the weak diffractions tangent to reflections can be clearly imaged. Diffraction PSTM can update migration velocities according to behaviors of reflection and diffraction events in the migrated gathers by scanning, thus overcoming a crucial problem in diffraction imaging. The reflector dips used in diffraction PSTM are obtained by picking the angles related to reflections in the shot and opening-angle gathers for a partial migration. Synthetic and field data tests demonstrate the validity of diffraction PSTM.

High-resolution imaging: An approach by incorporating stationary-phase implementation into deabsorption prestack time migration

Geophysics ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 81 (5) ◽  
pp. S317-S331 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jianfeng Zhang ◽  
Zhengwei Li ◽  
Linong Liu ◽  
Jin Wang ◽  
Jincheng Xu
Keyword(s):  
Stationary Phase ◽  
Fresnel Zone ◽  
Computational Cost ◽  
Computational Effort ◽  
Propagation Path ◽  
Time Migration ◽  
Resolution Imaging ◽  
Prestack Time Migration ◽  
Dip Angle ◽  
Absorption And Dispersion

We have improved the so-called deabsorption prestack time migration (PSTM) by introducing a dip-angle domain stationary-phase implementation. Deabsorption PSTM compensates absorption and dispersion via an actual wave propagation path using effective [Formula: see text] parameters that are obtained during migration. However, noises induced by the compensation degrade the resolution gained and deabsorption PSTM requires more computational effort than conventional PSTM. Our stationary-phase implementation improves deabsorption PSTM through the determination of an optimal migration aperture based on an estimate of the Fresnel zone. This significantly attenuates the noises and reduces the computational cost of 3D deabsorption PSTM. We have estimated the 2D Fresnel zone in terms of two dip angles through building a pair of 1D migrated dip-angle gathers using PSTM. Our stationary-phase QPSTM (deabsorption PSTM) was implemented as a two-stage process. First, we used conventional PSTM to obtain the Fresnel zones. Then, we performed deabsorption PSTM with the Fresnel-zone-based optimized migration aperture. We applied stationary-phase QPSTM to a 3D field data. Comparison with synthetic seismogram generated from well log data validates the resolution enhancements.

scholarly journals Separating and imaging diffractions of seismic waves in the full-azimuth dip-angle domain

2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 339-356
Author(s):  
Chuangjian Li ◽  
Jingtao Zhao ◽  
Suping Peng ◽  
Xiaoqin Cui ◽  
Peng Lin
Keyword(s):  
Seismic Waves ◽  
Fresnel Zone ◽  
Specular Reflection ◽  
New Method ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Imaging Method ◽  
Kirchhoff Migration ◽  
Strong Energy ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Dip Angle

Abstract Seismic diffractions are ideal carriers of information on small-scale, discontinuous objects and can therefore be used to detect these geologic objects. However, recognizing diffractions is difficult because specular reflection with strong energy masks the weak diffraction. In this study, we propose a diffraction separation and imaging method based on a Mahalanobis-based and phase-based attenuation function used to modify the Kirchhoff migration formula in the full-azimuth dip-angle domain. In this domain, reflections are restricted to within the first Fresnel zone and are distributed in the vicinity of the stationary point, while diffractions are located across a wide range of azimuth and dip angles. Synthetic and field data applications suggest that this new method can effectively separate and image diffractions. The results also demonstrate the efficiency of the new method in clarifying subsurface small-scale objects, which can provide finer information about these structures for seismic interpretation.

Poststack impedance inversion considering the diffractive component of the wavefield

Geophysics ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 85 (1) ◽  
pp. R11-R28 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kun Xiang ◽  
Evgeny Landa
Keyword(s):  
Specular Reflection ◽  
Low Frequency ◽  
Velocity Model ◽  
Forward Modeling ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Fracture Detection ◽  
Frequency Model ◽  
New Approach ◽  
Impedance Inversion ◽  
Diffraction Imaging

Seismic diffraction waveform energy contains important information about small-scale subsurface elements, and it is complementary to specular reflection information about subsurface properties. Diffraction imaging has been used for fault, pinchout, and fracture detection. Very little research, however, has been carried out taking diffraction into account in the impedance inversion. Usually, in the standard inversion scheme, the input is the migrated data and the assumption is taken that the diffraction energy is optimally focused. This assumption is true only for a perfectly known velocity model and accurate true amplitude migration algorithm, which are rare in practice. We have developed a new approach for impedance inversion, which takes into account diffractive components of the total wavefield and uses the unmigrated input data. Forward modeling, designed for impedance inversion, includes the classical specular reflection plus asymptotic diffraction modeling schemes. The output model is composed of impedance perturbation and the low-frequency model. The impedance perturbation is estimated using the Bayesian approach and remapped to the migrated domain by the kinematic ray tracing. Our method is demonstrated using synthetic and field data in comparison with the standard inversion. Results indicate that inversion with taking into account diffraction can improve the acoustic impedance prediction in the vicinity of local reflector discontinuities.

Seismic diffraction separation in the near-surface: Detection of high contrast voids in unconsolidated soils

Geophysics ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 1-72
Author(s):  
Parsa Bakhtiari Rad ◽  
Craig J. Hickey
Keyword(s):  
Soft Soil ◽  
Processing Parameters ◽  
Imaging Method ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
High Contrast ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Time Migration ◽  
Diffraction Imaging ◽  
Dip Angle ◽  
Scattering Time

Seismic diffractions carry the signature of near-surface high-contrast anomalies and need to be extracted from the data to complement the reflection processing and other geophysical techniques. Since diffractions are often masked by reflections, surface waves and noise, a careful diffraction separation is required as a first step for diffraction imaging. A multiparameter time-imaging method is employed to separate near-surface diffractions. The implemented scheme makes use of the wavefront attributes that are reliable fully data-derived processing parameters. To mitigate the effect of strong noise and wavefield interference in near-surface data, the proposed workflow incorporates two wavefront-based parameters, dip angle and coherence, as additional constraints. The output of the diffraction separation is a time trace-based stacked section that provides the basis for further analysis and applications such as time migration. To evaluate the performance of the proposed wavefront-based workflow, it is applied to two challenging field data sets that were collected over small culverts in very near-surface soft soil environments. The results of the proposed constrained workflow and the existing unconstrained approach are presented and compared. The proposed workflow demonstrates superiority over the existing method by attenuating more reflection and noise, leading to improved diffraction separation. The abundance of unmasked diffractions reveal that the very near-surface is highly scattering. Time migration is carried out to enhance the anomaly detection by focusing of the isolated diffractions. Although strong diffractivity is observed at the approximate location of the targets, there are other diffracting zones observed in the final sections that might bring uncertainties for interpretation.

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